‘Moon’ Review: Wake Me Up When It’s Quittin Time

I am a massive science fiction nerd. I’ve watched every episode of Stargate, even Atlantis and Universe. I own more science fiction films than other people own DVDs. I’ve read science fiction books that most people I know have never even heard of. This month with Kulture Shocked is going to be especially entertaining for me, because I finally get to share with the world my opinions about the vast amount of sci-fi media I have consumed over the course of my life. This week I get to review Moon, director Duncan Jones’ debut film that deals with some classic themes of science fiction in a way that manages to make them both interesting and fresh.

In Moon, Sam Rockwell stars as Sam Bell, a man coming up on the end of his three year contract as a solitary helium 3 miner on the surface of the moon. He yearns to see his wife again, as well as his daughter, who has was born after he left Earth. For company he interacts with GERTY, the protective, ever present robot voiced by Kevin Spacey. Without revealing the important details of the plot, I can say that a slow revelation proves that Sam Bell is not alone on the lunar station, forcing him to come to terms with himself and confront the fact that everything he knows is a lie.

The acting in this film is of an intensely high grade. Moonis the film that made me fall in love with Sam Rockwell, and his other feature films other than Iron Man 2 have suggest to me that my love for him isn’t misplaced. Kevin Spacey maintains his usual dominating presence, even when simply voicing a programmed machine with little inflection. The cinematography is provoking and engaging, with a wide variety of shot compositions to please even the most critical film studies professor. The special effects are simple and subtle while maintaining a realistic feel that allows the film to deal with some slightly less than feasible content topics without stretching the viewers imagination.

The film as a whole is thought provoking, engaging, tense, and at times emotional. Watching Sam Rockwell come to grips with the information he discovers over the course of the film is engrossing and enthralling. It is filled with small touches that are only noticeable after multiple viewings. I have watched the film three times now since its release, and I still found interesting facts about the content that I would not have known without intentional research in to the feature. If you enjoy high science fiction films, this is a must see. There’s no action. There’s no horror. There’s just a man dealing with a hard truth in a lonely fringe of the galaxy, and that simple experience is more interesting and entertaining then most of the science fiction I’ve seen in my long history of sci-fi fanaticism.

Born in Arizona, he currently resides in Denton, Texas. When he isn’t watching movies he’s playing board games and drinking whatever he can get his hands on. John watches Djimon Honsou movies because he likes Spawn, which had Michael Jai White.